And so they talk
by Rodlox
Summary: Divya learns that Evan is going to be leaving HankMed. Can she talk him out of it? May be multi-chapter or might not.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note:this is a coda to tonight's episode (the one that airs after "Jamal au vu all over again")

_It was the paper's fault._

Divya was in the house alone, performing an inventory on all the supplies there were in the Lawson house. She knew exactly where everything was, and where everyone was: Hank was out with Jill to see a patient and then go grab a bite to eat. Evan was... Divya wasn't sure it was wise to see if he had penned anything in on his calendar. _He left his laptop here, not to mention leaving it open for the screensaver to run._

On tv and in the movies, what happened next would have been brought about by a pill bottle being knocked over, or her hand reaching and missing something. But Divya had better motor control than most starlets and fictional characters, so it wasn't that.

It was a paper. Said paper had been moved from one small stack to another by Divya's smooth hands, only for a light breeze to tustle the tips of her hair and move the paper just enough to trigger the laptop's mouse.

The cartwheeling money - Dollars, Pounds, Yen - vanished, replaced by a simple set of words:

**PLEASE ENTER PASSWORD**

Divya's gaze moved to it -_ the eye is drawn to movement, after all; basic biology _- and she looked at those three words, looked at the empty password box. _Evan would not have left his laptop out if he had something scandalous on it,_ Divya thought, a thought appended a moment later with, _Granted, it __**is**__ Evan's...he might be preparing yet another round of interactive pie charts and quarterly..._ and shook her head.

_Just one look_, she told herself, rationalizing it as avoiding any unpleasant surprises in the next HankMed conference or summit or whatever Evan was going to call it when he sprang it on them. _One look,_ as she considered what Evan would consider a viable password. She could always deny it later.

After she had left to treat some surfers, followed by a pet that Evan would have called Cujo's big brother, Divya returned to the house, where she found Evan standing and looking out at the ocean.

Stopping on the other side of the patio, "We need to talk," Divya said.

"What can I do for my favorite P.A.?" Evan asked, turning his head to look at her. "Did we expand the HankMed family today?"

"We did," Divya said, ignoring the little voice in her head that told her how, if the tone were different, it could have been romantic followed by either teasing, innuendo, playful, or promise. "But that isn't what this is about."

"Oh?" turning around to give her his full attention.

_He's always like that,_ said the little judge in her brain, _giving you the impression that you are the most important person he's talking to_. "Why are you quitting?"

"Huh. Uh, you saw that, did you?" Under his breath, Evan said, "I really need to get a better screensaver password."

_Granted that 'a pair au pair' is not something that crosses most minds,_ Divya granted. But what she said was, "I did. Is this about what...what we discussed yesterday?" Evan's laptop had had one open file when she'd entered the password...and the file was Evan's letter of resignation from HankMed.

"Yester- What, oh no. No, definately not, Divs. I -" pausing at her narrowing eyes. "You're going to hit me again, aren't you?"

"Not if you don't make me do so."

_Well that probably isn't the face you wear when you're about to kiss...not that I would know, since I was looking elsewhere at the time, rather understandably, what with everything and -_ and told himself to stop that and to start talking. It worried him some that that admonishing inner voice sounded exactly like Divya's....Evan figured it wasn't actually her talking, because that would have meant that he'd said the preceeding words, and Divya wasn't hitting him, so...

"Noted," Evan said. "Though, Divya, did you look at the file?"

"I did," she admitted. "Which is why I need to know if this is related to our earlier discussion."

"While it was great, even if the situation left whole bunches to be desired, I gotta say, it's not connected to the file. Well," Evan said with a shrug and a slight duck of his head, "thematically, okay, it's connected."

"Explain," Divya said.

Evan smiled, looking cheerfully at her.

"What?" she asked.

"You didn't look at the date."

Divya just looked at him, patiently awaiting the moment he would start making sense.

"The date the program says I saved the file," Evan said. "Divvy, the last time I added anything to that file was weeks ago."

"What?"

"Before the whole business with your parents and the horses," Evan added.

"Then why did you write it?" Divya asked, very concerned: it was exceedingly rare that things didn't add up when Evan was making sense.

"Not just you," Evan said. Putting one hand to the back of his neck, "Well, you were a big part of it, and..." and shook his head. "You're right."

"I usually am. Right about what this time?"

"I don't have lasting relationships. In anything, really, it's not just with women that I suck."

They both elected to let that slip pass them by.

"Tell me something," Evan said. "Total and complete honesty, okay? I can take it. Dish it out."

"Okay," Divya said.

Before she could say anything more, Evan asked her, "Why do you think I came to the Hamptons?"

"Because Hank wouldn't have driven here himself?"

"There is that, but that's a symptom, not the cause. What, I pay attention when the two of you talk."

"That or you watch House."

He cracked a smile. "The two are not mutually exclusive, you know.

"But I came to the Hamptons because I none of my enterprises ever work for very long, and that's when they work at all. I'm telling you, Divya, if Raj or anybody had called and offered me a job - doing your taxes, folding laundry, watching kids - before I had the idea to bring my brother up here, I would've grabbed it in a second," snapping his fingers.

"One more job," Divya said.

Evan nodded. "For however long that would've lasted. I can't stick to anything, no matter how hard I try - eventually everything loses its luster, and my mind starts thinking up new business opportunities."

Now Evan's near-constant proposed additions to HankMed made sense to Divya: _He's trying to stay interested. He's attempting to stick around and stay with his creation. _"Evan, I -"

"Don't need to be bothered by me, I know," he said, nodding. "If it helps any, it's not you, it's me - cliche, I know, but hey," with a shrug. "It's been a long time coming." And, as he walked by, knowing her well enough that his shoulder didn't rub against hers, "Namaste."


	2. The Next Day

The doorbell was ringing.

"I'm coming!" Evan shouted.

The doorbell didn't seem to have heard him.

"Yeah, yeah," Evan said in his dash to the door. And when he opened it, he found, "Mrs. Katdare?" he asked like a fool - _of course it's her,_ he told himself. _But what is Divya's mother doing here? I mean it's not like Divya lives here; she just works here._

"Yes," Mrs. Katdare said. "Evan, yes? Or was that name mere theater to help my daughter cover her story?"

"No, it's really my name. Evan R. Lawson, C.P.A."

"Chief Physician's Assistant?" she asked.

"No, but it's a good guess, especially given what happened the last time we met. No, I just work at HankMed," _or I did._

"Which is where Divya also works?"

_Um, why do I get the feeling I'm being painted into a corner? _"She does indeed. Your daughter is the best employee HankMed has ever had."

Mrs. Katdare looked understandably pleased at that news.

"Oh, uh, come in," Evan said, "if you want to, that is. Divya's not here, but you're welcome to -" and kicked himself for the impression that that might give._ Great going, genius, now Div's mom probably thinks her daughter's sleeping here._

"I did not come here to speak to my daughter," she said as she walked into the house.

"Oh," was all Evan could think to say.

Mrs. Katdare turned her head, her next words momentarily forgotten as she looked at the kitchen, her lips smiling just a bit, like a hunch had proven right, Mrs. Katdare asked Evan, "You were expecting myself or Mr. Katdare?"

"Um, no, no not really."

"Divya?"

"No, she's out seeing to a medical emergency right now, so I don't think she was expecting either of you at the moment, not that she'd tell me if she was."

"No. You were expecting Divya, sans this emergency."

_Yeah, emergency's a good word for this right here. _"Nope. She was scheduled to give a check-up right about now, but I was able to reschedule that just before the doorbell rang."

"Then why are you cooking Indian food?"

"That's not Indian food."

Mrs. Katdare looked at him.

"Honest, it's not," Evan said. "Back in college, a friend of mine taught me how to make it."_ Had an accent she insisted was British, wouldn't say which part of Britain. I say a friend; a girlfriend, granted, but we lasted eight months. Then she moved to Israel, but we didn't part on the best of terms, so I didn't count her when Divy asked me the other day._

"Marag," Mrs. Katdare said.

Evan nodded. _That's what she said too. _"That's the name I was told."

Silence as she strode around the room, seeming to Evan like she was examining every detail she came across. "It smells as it should."

"Thank you," he said, not sure what else there was to say to that, what else he could say to that.

To Evan's trained eye, Mrs. Katdare seemed to be weighing something, _And not a trivial something, _he felt. No, it was obviously an issue which was bothering her, one weighing in insistantly. "There is a question I have for you."

"Okay," Evan said. "Ask away."

"Over the soup."

"O-kay," Evan said, getting out an extra bowl and utensils for himself - the one already out, he defered to her taking. _Though if Divs walks in on lunch, I may have no words,_ he thought as he ladled the bowls full.

The normally rich and delicious taste was cardboard to Evan as he waited through minutes of the two of them silently eating at the kitchen table. _C'mon already! What's the question? 42?_

"I saw her," Mrs. Katdare said. "When you left the samosas on my husband's chest and left the room, you pressed yourself against the door frame, so as to not push Divya," that last bit with a touch of approval in it.

"She kinda had her hands full," Evan said, not sure what it would say if he set his spoon down so he could focus on the question. "I didn't, so, I figured I should get out of everyone's way." _Kinda like now, sorta; but not for the same reasons, definately not the same._

As you were leaving, Divya's eyes moved to watch you," she said. "If you had hesitated, she would have stepped aside and asked if you were in need of assistance."

"Yeah, that does sound like something Divya would do," Evan agreed.

"I am her mother," which, based on the tone, could just as easily have been 'of course I know what my daughter would do.'

"Yes, yes you are, and Divya sings your praises," hoping the mom wouldn't ask for specific dates and times.

"What are your intentions?" Rubina Katdare asked.

"I - what?" Evan asked, proud of himself for not squeaking the word out. _I said Div sings your praises, not told me to ask for your blessing. _"I'm sorry, could you - say again, please, I think I had something in my ear."

Divya's mother just looked at him.


	3. A few hours later

{later that day}

When Divya answered her phone, it was Hank on the other end of the line, and he asked her, "Divya, where's my brother?"

A small frown creased her forehead. "Isn't he at the house?" Divya asked.

"_I'm_ at the house," Hank replied. "Evan isn't."

Divya was silent, her thoughts racing, competing.

"Divya?"

"I can't believe it," she said to herself, though there were several things that were equally plausible explanations...and all of them were equally unbelievable in their affrontery.

"What, can't believe what?" Hank asked.

Collecting herself, Divya asked, "Did you find anything...a letter or a note or anything?"

"No, I haven't. Why?" Hank asked. "_Should I _have found one?"

While there was the possibility, remote and infinitesimal as it was, that Evan had been kidnapped by people interested in getting ransom money, Divya knew there was a more plausible explanation. "No, I was just making sure."

"Making sure of what?" Hank asked. "You're making me nervous, Divya. What do you know?"

_Many things, Hank Lawson. None of which help you right now._ "I'll see what I can find out," Divya said, and hung up...and speed-dialed her mother.


	4. en route

Sitting in teh plane, Evan tried not to look out the window at all the clouds passing by. _Lady or the tiger. Okay maybe not the best description of the situation._

He still wasn't sure there wasn't a better description, though. The jet wasn't commercial...it was wholly owned by the company, _which, given that Divya's folks own said company, means I'm on a private plane. I'd be in awe of how awsome this is, if I wasn't on my own._

_I'd probably be on my own no matter what, anyway, though._

As he wondered if anyone served crackers or pretzels on this flight, Evan could still hear Mrs. Katdare's words.....

**~~--====--~~**

'While you may think of recent events as reflecting poorly on you, in truth Mr. Katdare and I were impressed by how you covered for my daughter until circumstances became too grave to continue in the lie; had you continued the lie even then, we would not be having this discussion, nor would we be here if you had folded and confessed all to Mr. Katdare and I when you were introduced to us. That has demonstrated to us satisfactorily that your judgement is sound and worthwhile.'

Mrs. Katdare had taken a breath before continuing: 'What has my daughter told you of her future?'

'She's going to marry Raj and take a position in the family business.'

'And has she told you her thoughts in the matter?'

'She really doesn't like real estate,' Evan said, figuring arranged marriages were a can of worms too dangerous to open, particularly right now.

'I see. Then this will suit you well.'

Evan swallowed his nervousness, trying to ignore how it stuck in his craw, refusing to budge one way or another.

'Divya will remain here in the Hamptons, working in HankMed or wherever she wishes to. Katdares do not force their children.'

_Uh-huh_, Evan thought.

'In return, we will support you. There will be a desk with your name on it whenever you wish to practice law within the company. But make no mistake, Mr. Lawson, you will always work for our company.'

_Whenever I wish to...Divya told her mother about my job-hopping? Or did Mrs. Katdare look up my occupational history? Or did she used to know someone like me?_

'Do you accept?' Mrs. Katdare asked him.


End file.
